Exploring the Role of Family Support and Ethnic Pride in Cultivating the Academic and Career Resourcefulness of Underserved Youth in an Afterschool Program

The Urban Review - The purpose of this study was to identify the internal and external factors that support the academic and career resourcefulness of adolescents from underserved backgrounds. This...     

Model-based event-triggered multi-vehicle coordinated tracking control using reduced order models

The coordinated tracking problem where a group of followers intercepts a dynamic leader is studied. It is shown in this paper that reduction of inter-agent communication is obtained and improved performance is achieved when each follower implements dynamical models of neighbors and by using an event-triggered control strategy that requires each agent to send measurement updates only when necessary. The results in this paper consider directed graphs and the possible existence of cycles. Performance bounds on the tracking error have been obtained, which are functions of the communication topology and the event thresholds. This approach is extended to consider measurement noise and similar bounds are presented for this case.     

Making the implicit explicit: Supporting teachers to bridge cultures

In this paper, we report the results of a longitudinal action research project in which elementary teachers used a cultural framework (individualism–collectivism) to understand differences between the culture of immigrant Latino families and the culture of U.S. schools. Making explicit the culture-based beliefs implicit in home and school practices allowed teachers to think differently about their students and their own teaching, and with that change in thinking came the immediate and ongoing creation of a wide range of innovations to bridge home and school cultures. Shifting to a preschool emphasis, we discuss how the individualism–collectivism framework has been used in professional development for early childhood educators. A broad view of professional development is discussed including the role of college faculty, early childhood program administrators, teachers, and families. We suggest how such professional development might be mounted through use of methods and materials that promote explicit models of immigrant cultures to reduce home–school cultural mismatches for immigrant children.     

Predictors of Hispanic School Teachers' Self-efficacy in the Pedagogical Uses of Technology

A study to predict teachers' self-efficacy in using technology for pedagogical purposes was conducted in a predominantly Hispanic school district in south Texas; 438 elementary teachers completed a 32-item survey aligned to the National Educational Technology Standards for Teachers. Findings suggested that the instrument is highly reliable in measuring Hispanic school teachers' self-efficacy when they are asked to rate their confidence in their ability to perform technology tasks for educational purposes. An exploratory factor analysis (orthogonal and nonorthogonal) allowed the derivation of composite measures. Three subscales regarding issues of pedagogy composed the dependent variable. Regression analyses (OLS and 2SLS) revealed that two derived composite measures and two contrast variables listed in the general information of the survey strongly predicted the response variable.     

The social ecology and early parenting of Caucasian adolescent mothers

Social characteristics, maternal behaviors, and the home environments of Caucasian adolescent and nonadolescent mothers were investigated in a sample of 50 primiparous low- and middle-class women and their 4-month-old infants. The mothers were interviewed about their child-care network and about stressful life events that may have occurred since the infant's birth. The HOME inventory was completed and videotapes of 2 hours of home observations were coded to assess maternal proximity, verbalizations, activity, and physical contact with the infant. Interview data indicated that adolescent mothers relied more frequently on other teenagers and other network members for help in child care than nonadolescent mothers. In addition, they also received more frequent support from their mothers and less frequent help from their partner's and partner's mother and siblings than nonadolescent mothers. During the home visit, they were less verbal with their infants and scored significantly lower on the Responsiveness and Maternal Involvement subscales as well as on the total HOME inventory; these results were replicated on subgroups matched for socioeconomic status, emphasizing the unique social context and parenting practices of teenage mothers.     

Developmental Outcome of Minority Infants: A Process-oriented Look into Our Beginnings

This article reviews the literature on the development of children of minority status from birth to 3 years of age (infants). 5 major sources of influence on the developmental outcome of minority infants are proposed: cultural beliefs and caregiving practices, health status and health care practices, family structure and characteristics, socioeconomic factors, and biological factors. It is suggested that differences exist between minority and Anglo families in their developmental goals and interactions during the infancy period. The health status of some minority groups places these infants in an at-risk category for neurodevelopmental problems. The family context is characterized by younger mothers, a higher percentage of single heads of households, but also large, extended families. Socioeconomic factors have a pervasive influence on both infants and parents, and the contribution of biological factors is suggested but poorly understood. It is concluded that these factors act synergistically to place these infants in alternative (not necessarily deviant) developmental pathways, or in "at-risk" categories for neurodevelopmental problems, while canalization processes are operating to insure that major developmental milestones are achieved.